Looking at Landing Sites for the Mars Science Laboratory

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Final candidate landing sites and reasons are:

North
Mawrth Vallis -Diverse mineral signatures -Mixing of soils by impacts and water

South
Holden Crater -Indicates water flowed from valley into crater lake, overflowing, leaving layers

Eberswalde Crater -Water obviously flowed out of highlands into crater

Equator
Gale Crater -Once filled with water Many minerals exist ie Sulplates Sediments Clay

I hope it's Gale. Once equator was warmer? Likelier life.

I'd like to see some mountains in the pictures that come back from Mars. Viking, Sojourner, Spirit and Opportunity all have very 'flat' surroundings. I know it's more safe for those probes to land in such areas... but some mountains on the horizons would be a nice change in the photos sent back from Mars.

Good point. Besides, the rover is gonna get stuck on a rock or something eventually (as happened recently). So it might aswell get stuck somewhere interesting.

Speaking of getting stuck, cant they have some helium balloon or similar to inflate from a pod on the back of the rover and lift it out of being stuck?

Seems a shame to waste that helium that got vented from the lander they dropped at the north pole. That's if they use helium on the rovers.

Its a hamfisted idea but an idea nonetheless.

With the hope that someone at JPL is reading:
Is there any particular reason why only one rover is being sent this time? With much of the cost of the mission already paid for in designing the rover, would it not be economical to build two rovers like in the MER mission?

Thanks!

I'm not from JPL but I think I have the answer. Spirit and Opportunity were built specifically as low cost rovers as part of a program at NASA to send cheap Orbiters/ rovers to other celestial bodies.

The Mars Science Laboratory is not part of this program. To give you a cost break down, spirit and opporunity each cost a couple hundred million to make. The MSL on the other hand will end up costing a couple BILLION. Building a second of these may just be too expensive for NASA's budget.

I am amazed that the landing sites are so complex and consist of extreme terrains! Such a landing would be an extreme scientific milestone!

Consider that Phoenix was concerned with large stones - this mission will be landing in shear cliff style terrains. Amazing! And Good Luck!

amazing

Very clear and informative.  Thank you.

Thanks!

gr8